Personal blenders beat jug blenders in Which? tests

But the gap is closing with four new Best Buys

Jug blenders can’t match the high scores of some personal blenders, our tests show

Personal blenders, such as the Nutribullet, are sweeping the board in our 2016 blender tests, taking the top three most high-scoring spots over more traditional jug blenders.

The highest-scoring personal blender we tested achieved a rare 90% – churning out perfectly smooth drinks, soups and more, as well as being easy to use and clean up afterwards.

But jug blenders may be staging a fightback. Four of the six jug blenders from our latest test were awarded Best Buy status for their brilliant blending skills. One achieved our highest jug blender score for years, with 80%.

Find out which blenders we recommend, and compare models to find the best blender for you with ourblender reviews.

Nutribullet vs other personal blenders

The Nutribullet 600 has triggered a surge in the popularity of personal blenders. These work by blending directly in a compact blending cup that then converts into a portable drinking mug – saving time and washing up.

This type of blender is handy if you mostly blend one or two smoothies at a time and want to take your drink to the gym or to work. While jug blenders usually have at least 1.5-litre capacities, personal blenders tend to have a capacity of around 0.6 litres instead.

The entry-level Nutribullet 600 costs around £70, but other Nutribullet models can cost up to £200. If you’re on a budget, but keen on a personal smoothie maker, we’ve tested plenty of cheaper alternatives. Use our blender reviews to get the inside track on the best cheap blenders.

Personal blenders like the Nutribullet have become very popular

Would a jug blender suit you better?

If you want more capacity – to whip up bigger batches of soups, smoothies or cocktails, for example – a jug blender could be the answer.

Unless you particularly want the option of having a portable smoothie cup, jug blenders can offer more flexibility. And with prices of the blenders we tested starting from just £25 for the Argos Cookworks Glass blender, a bigger blender doesn’t necessarily have to be more expensive.

You’ll also find that some blenders, such as the Vitamix S30 and Nutribullet Rx blenders, come with both a jug and a personal blending cup attachment for the best of both worlds.

Find out which models made it into our list of favourites with our round-up of the best blenders.

Latest juicer reviews

If you prefer juice to smoothies, we’ve also been busy testing the latest juicers. Six new juicers have gone through our tough tests, including four masticating (slow) juicers.

Masticating juicers crush fruit and veg gently to extract juice, rather than blitzing it with a high-speed blade as more-common centrifugal juicers do. They are often claimed to extract more and better quality juice, although we’ve found this isn’t always the case.

They also tend to be quite large appliances. If you’re short on space but keen on a slow juicer, the Philips Micro Masticating juicer might catch your eye. It’s the first super-compact slow juicer we’ve tested. Find out how it compares with its beefier rivals by heading to our juicer reviews.

Which? blender and juicer reviews

Click on the links below to get straight to the individual reviews from our most recent 2016 tests.